Call Me A Traitor
by ChokolatePawptarts
Summary: Recent college graduate Sophia has been assigned to U.S. Military's NEST, only to find herself polishing and fixing the Autobots instead of fighting alongside with them. Secrets of herself and the Autobots will be revealed... OCXBumblebee. AU.
1. Prologue

The room was dark. The only thing that gave me light was the orange street lights and the stars that accompanied the night sky. I looked beside me, and my friend was sleeping peacefully with a light snore. I smiled. I felt really thankful to have her as my only friend. A sigh escaped through my lips and I turned towards the window to watch the stars. My friend told me there was going to be a meteor shower tonight. I really wanted to watch it from a good view- say, a roof or something. Although, my friend and I couldn't get up there since we had a curfew at the Orphanage.

"Hmm… And I really wanted to see it for myself, too!" I thought, pouting and furrowing my brows. I sighed again, only to be defeated by these building's rules. I turned my back to the window as I hoped to get some shut-eye. Then, I heard a distant, metal screeching sound that seemed like it was clashing with the Earth's atmosphere. I sat up immediately and looked out my window. There I saw, what seemed like a transportation pod, fly through the sky. I couldn't help but to throw my bed sheets aside and plopped out of bed to reach my friend.

"Hey! Hey, Susie!" I whispered while I was shaking one of her shoulders.

"Hn? Whaaaat?" She merely moaned and tried to wave my hand off of her.

"There's something falling from the sky! You _have_ to take a look at it with me!" I told her, looking between the window and my sleepy friend.

"What? You mean the meteor shower?" She was slightly more awake now as she rubbed her eyes.

"N-No! It's not the meteor shower… It's something else!" I told her, shaking her shoulder even more.

"What else could it be—"

Susie was interrupted by a huge shake on the floor. This shocked the both of us, and we held each other for dear life as the floor began to shake more vigorously below us. We screamed a bit, hoping that the shaking would end soon. And just as we had hoped, the shaking finally stopped. We looked at each other in ease, and we both sighed simultaneously. Our door was slammed open by the Orphanage director who looked seriously worried.

"Are you two alright?" The director asked us. Both of us looked at each other, then nodded.

"Thank goodness… I sure hope that wasn't the meteorite. Those things don't really land on Earth very often. At least, not in our area." She continued as she held onto the doorknob.

Suddenly, I heard something in my ear- as if someone, or some_thing_ was calling out to me. I looked out the window. My mind was filled with a language I couldn't comprehend. It was definitely a foreign language, but the question is: what language is it?

"Sophie… Sophie… Sophie!" The director called out my name.

Her yell snapped me out of that strange moment, and I looked at her apologetically.

"I-I'm sorry… I was just… spacing out." I hesitantly replied as I was expecting another one of her dreadful lectures.

The director sighed and closed the door halfway. "Sophie… What am I going to do with you? If only you weren't stuck in your own little world, you would have been adopted by now. Isn't that what you want? To be adopted?"

Those words… truly hurt. _Of course_ I wanted to be adopted, _really_. But why is it so bad for me to be interested in something that I wish to pursue? Why? I can't be adopted because I'm into extraterrestrial stuff?

I didn't reply to her question. I only looked down to the corner of the room and bit my bottom lip. I heard the director sigh and close the door rather… aggressively. Susie, on the other hand, tried to console me.

"You know she's only saying that because she's thinking about your future." Susie lightly patted my shoulder. Pissed, I brushed her hand off of me.

"Yeah, thinking of sending me far away and not wanting to deal with me." I stomped my way towards the window and leaned myself forward onto the window sill.

"That's not what she would want-"

"Susie, why should you be worried about me? You should be worried about yourself… since you're going to your adoptive parents soon." I looked her in the eyes. She did the same. Her eyes were always so huge and so green. I envied her beauty… as well as her being adopted.

"Because you're my friend, Sophie. My first and only friend." She nodded with a gentle smile. I admit, I couldn't stay mad at her- not with those eyes. There was a long pause between us, as I've only been staring at her. I looked down to our feet, and shuffled mine. I finally sighed and went to the closet to grab my sneakers. I also grabbed a jacket and put it over my blue PJ dress. After I closed the closet, I ran over to my drawers. I took out some hiking rope I found in the basement and tied it around the hanger that was built into the wall. It was right next to the window, and just as I did so, Susie knew exactly what I was about to do.

"Wh-What are you doing, Sophie? Are you seriously going to sneak out?" She whispered, trying to look at me in the face. I ignored her question and began to climb out of the window. Luckily, there was a second roof that can smoothly drop someone to the first floor and onto the street.

"Sophie—"

"I'm going to check out the thing that crashed onto the ground. Stay quiet, and don't try to stop me." I held onto the rope as I began to slowly walk down the roof. I slid down a bit just to get to the floor faster, which was a success. I landed onto the sidewalk as quietly as I could, and looked back up at Susie. She looked worriedly with her head out of the window. All I did was gave her a reassuring smile, and began to ran towards the crash site.

I could see the light of the fire that was on the transportation pod a few yards away. This lead me to an abandoned house lot, which was acres long. The light was just behind the house. I peaked behind the wall of the house, seeing something that was just unbelievable to the human eye. My eyes widened, seeing what I believed to be a gigantic…

"Robot alien…" I whispered in complete awe. Before me, was a huge, robotic alien that was lying lifelessly on the ground. There was a sign on the transportation pod… I wonder what it is. I took a step closer, trying to get a better look at the damage. I would say the damage was pretty devastating. Then again, it seemed like this alien robot was already injured _before_ it landed here. It must have been in some battle or something. I wouldn't know. Then I noticed something on its palm. It seems to be a kind of space stone. I tilted my head a bit, trying to get a better look at the object. I subconsciously walked closer and closer until I finally squatted down to look at it within my reach. I looked between the robot's face and the stone, as I was being cautious of the robot still being alive. The voice entered my mind again, only this time with _voices_. Again, I didn't understand what in the world these voices were talking about, but for some strange reason, I thought they were telling me to touch this stone as if it would give me incredible powers or something. Of course, I didn't really believe it at first. Although, without even thinking about it, I reached towards the stone as if I was ordered to. Once I touched the stone… Man, it was the strangest, most painful, and exhilarating feeling I have ever felt in my entire 15 years of my life.

"_You are truthfully the most foolish human being. With your powers, Lord Megatron will rise up once again._"

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><p><strong>Author's note: Whoa! Cliffhanger! Haha. Well, what do you guys think of the prologue? I know it's confusing right now, but you'll get it soon enough in the next chapter. Also, as a side note, this story is taken place right after <strong>_**Revenge of the Fallen**_**. I, at least, wanted to clear that up. LOL.**

**Ever since I've watched **_**Transformers: Dark of the Moon**_**, I've been hooked to Transformers! xD I'm a bit noobish on the Autobot/Decepticon names, but I'll make sure to make that cleared up as well. Please stay tuned for the next chapter! **


	2. New Assignment

"_You are truthfully the most foolish human being. With your powers, Lord Megatron will rise up once again._"

"Wh-What…? What are you talking about?"

I can hear my voice echo through the darkness. Everything around me is… dark. Where am I? What happened to me?

"_Wake up… Sophie."_

Someone is calling to me… Who can it be?

"_No, it's' okay. She's had a long day yesterday, so she's a bit tired."_

What in the world is she talking about? I'm here… In California… In the Orphanage, aren't I?

"Dammit, Sophie, wake up!"

My eyes shot wide open, and the morning sunlight entered my delirious eyes. I moaned and shielded my eyes with my forearms. I forgot… I was on a plane.

"Gah! Geez, Susie… Why did you have to open up the blinds?"

Yes, Susie and I are still friends.

"Be-CAUSE… We're almost to the NEST headquarters, you dummy." She gave off a smirk and pointed out of the window. I peeked through the crack I made with my arms, trying to adjust my eyes to the immensely bright sunlight. I brought down my arms and squinted my eyes as I got closer to the window. I could see Chicago right below me.

"Oh… You're right…" I said nonchalantly, and leaned back onto my chair. I yawned, as well as stretching my arms.

"What were you dreaming about? It seemed like you had a nightmare, or something." Susie asked, turning towards me. Ah, there she goes again with her big green eyes. Not only that, but the way her long, wavy hair just contours her face to make that really concerned expression. I just couldn't ignore it.

"..." I didn't say anything. I only looked at her with my auburn eyes, hoping that she would already know what I was thinking.

"…O-Oh… Was it _that_ dream again?" Susie shrugged and frowned slightly. She guessed it right.

"Yeah… It's been haunting me for years." I clenched my left my arm, feeling the same sensation from that night when I had encountered a _Decepticon_.

There was an awkward silence between us. I glanced at Susie for a moment, and of course, she was trying to find the words to console me. I know she was just trying to help, but there's really not much she can say to help me forget about it. There's nothing anyone can do to help me forget about that night. I sighed once more, and then cleared my throat.

"So anyway… Are you sure that it's okay if I can stay in your apartment? I really don't want to be in the way of you and your new job…" I laughed hesitantly and shrugged.

"Of course! You're my _best_ friend, Sophie. I would let you stay at my place whenever you want! Well… when I put it that way, I guess not _whenever_. Seems like there's too much freedom in that… But, you know-"

"Haha, it's alright Susie. I already know what you mean." I chuckled. Her rambling on and on is something that I've already gotten used to. It was something that made me feel a bit at ease, especially after thinking about _that_ dream again.

"I just can't believe you've been assigned to NEST! You get to work with the… Um… What was it? Something with an 'A' right?" She nudged at me. I chuckled again.

"They're called _Autobots_." I corrected her, also giving her a wink and a devious smirk.

"Yeah! Autobots! Wow, I wish I get to work with them… They helped save our world TWICE! Then again, I'm not as physically fit and all 'high-martial-art-status' as you are." She giggled and playfully punched my arm. I would have done the same, but with my strength, I think I would have seriously hurt her. So I only patted her shoulder as lightly as I could.

"Yeah. I'm actually pretty excited. I've only ever seen them on TV. They must be really great beings… since they helped protect our world and all." I narrowed my eyes, and then stared out of my window. I can see that we were quickly descending to the airport.

"I can't wait… To see the more great things they will bring to our world." A small smile formed on my lips.

Ever since I was a little girl, I was known to take apart things and put them back together as something even greater. I wouldn't say that it was because of talent, but rather because I love solving problems. Not like social problems, I'm pretty horrible at that, but I would say more like mechanical problems. Especially when Susie and I was at the Orphanage, it would usually be me who fixes any problems with the appliances. It soon progressed to electricity problems, although, I didn't do that very often since our insanely strict director was worried about me getting hurt. I won't go into more detail with that woman… anyway, fixing mechanical problems is like a puzzle to me. It made fixing mechanical problems even more fun. Once I hit college, I took a course in Mechanical Engineering. I was going quite far in that… Though, I felt like I wanted to do something else for a change. So, I joined the Navy. I did immense training (which got me to have this immense strength), though I was later assigned to become an Aviation Electronics Technician. Go figure. Well, at least I put my mechanical skills to the test.

Well, soon after I finished college, I was given an offer to work with NEST because of my so-called 'superfluous' job in the Navy. I'm not sure if that was a good thing or not… but I immediately took the offer. This is a once in a lifetime kind of thing where I get to work with actual extraterrestrial beings. This, in my opinion, is really cool.

"So, what's the plan?" Susie asked me as we stepped out of the plane and into the airport gates.

"I'm guessing I'm going over to your place to put my luggage away. And then I guess I'll head over to the NEST headquarters." I shrugged, putting my suitcase on the floor and rolling it as we walked.

"You 'guess'? You're a part of the U.S. Military who works with the Autobots and yet you don't know what you're going to do now?" Susie raised a brow at me. I nudged her to be quiet. The operation with the Autobots is a bit top secret, after all. I merely glanced at her for a second and laughed nervously.

"You know… Sometimes they don't tell us what to do until we actually get to the base!"I whispered.

"What kind of military would do that? That's totally inconvenient…" She whispered back, giving me a pout. I only sighed.

As we made our way towards the entrance of the airport, we were both stopped by two men wearing black tuxedos and sunglasses. This looked like a case of _Men in Black_.

"Are you Sophie L. Utohana?" One of the men asked me.

"Yes?"

"Come with us." The other man showed us his badge, certifying that he was a part of the NEST.

"Are you getting arrested, Sophie?" Susie asked worriedly, but I nudged her again to stay quiet.

"What about my luggage?" I asked.

"That will be taken care of, but first, you must come with us. Immediately." One of the men tapped my shoulder and started to push me forward. I turned my head back, watching as Susie was getting smaller and smaller in my vision.

"I…uh… Save me something for dinner, will ya?" I yelled out to her, and then waved slightly. Susie only giggled, gave a nod, and waved back. I chuckled silently to myself, then looked forward. There was already a car waiting for us outside. I wouldn't say it was a car, but it was more like a pick-up truck—a HUGE pick-up truck, in that matter.

"…What kind of car is this, if I may ask?" I asked, looking at the shiny, charcoal exterior of the vehicle as one the men took my suitcase in the back.

"A GMC Topkick." The other man replied, opening the back door for me. I nodded slightly and proceeded to get inside.

"Wow… Even the interior is huge. Pretty neat… I guess." I thought, waiting for the men to sit inside. I looked out the window and saw them conversing with each other. I yawned and stretched my arms again. As bored as I was, I was actually getting really excited. A smile began to form on my face and I began to giggle to myself. I laid my head back onto the seat cushion and looked up at the vehicle's ceiling. I began to think about what kind of work I was likely to do, and how the missions worked. However, while I was spaced out in my thoughts, I spotted something in the center of the ceiling. It looked oddly… familiar. I raised a brow and got closer to it. Then, it hit me. This symbol… It's—

"We're heading for NEST right now." One the men opened the door and talked through his cell phone. His presence startled me, and when I suddenly stood up, I hit my head on the ceiling. Hard.

"O-Ow…" I muttered, holding my head with my hands as the pain tingled down my spine.

"Are you alright, Ms. Utohana?" The man asked me quite concernedly.

"I-I'm fine… I'm fine…"

Both of the men looked at me, and then to one another. They both shrugged, and we were on our way to the NEST headquarters. While on our way there, I was looking out of the window and tried to take in the place that I would now call _home_. We reached the city and the skyscrapers totally reminded me of the skyscrapers back in California. I think I could get used to this.

We reached our destination, though it didn't really seem like it. The building said _Department of Health and Human Services_.

"…Is this really the place?" I asked, peeking in between the men. One of them hushed me. I only brought up my hands and mouthed "my bad, my bad".

We entered the premises and parked towards the entrance to the building. The men got out of the pick-up truck followed by me. The same man patted my shoulder and gently shoved my forward. I looked back at the pick-up truck. I began to think about the symbol inside it. Could it be an Autobot? I turned forward again and walked through the door. We walked through many different halls, all of which looked pretty much like a _Health and Human Services_ building. Although, my thoughts were wrong when we approached two huge metal doors. The man punched in the pass code on the doorknob, and then, we were in. What I saw… was truly amazing. I couldn't help but to blurt out,

"Whoa…"

There they were: the Autobots. I've never seen so many of them in one place before. It looked like they were training with the military soldiers. We began to walk downstairs to the same floor as the Autobots. I watched them while I was following the two men. I was so tempted to get close to them, but of course, duty calls. A smile, once again, reached my face as well as the excitement. I couldn't wait to work with them! While walking, there was this one particular Autobot that I noticed was staring at me. It was the yellow Autobot, though I wasn't really sure what his name was. I didn't why he was staring at me, but I figured it was because I was new. I had no idea what gotten to me, but I subconsciously raised my hand and waved at him. I thought,

"Stupid! What are you thinking? Why the hell am I waving at this Autobot when I barely know him?"

I thought he was going to give me this awkward look like I was crazy or something (which, wouldn't be too hard to do). Instead, he just waved back, and I could have sworn he was smiling at me. For an Autobot to do that was oddly… cute. I suddenly stopped, and the two men stepped aside. Before me was the founder of NEST, William Lennox.

"Congratulations for being a part of the team." He offered his hand and smiled at me.

"O-Oh… It's a pleasure." I nodded shyly and shook his hand.

"Well, there has been a slight mix up in your assignment, and I apologize for the late notice." He let go of my hand and the smile on his face slightly faded off. Oh my, what does this mean? "All of our spots have been taken up for the Armed Unit at the moment, so for now, you have been assigned to help polish and fix any of the Autobots and their weaponry."

My mouth gaped open.

"Again, I apologize for the late notice. Though, when we do have a spot for the Armed Unit, I'll be sure to let you know. If you have any questions, just come by and ask me." He nodded to me and the two men, and then proceeded to his work again. He was a nice gentleman, for sure, but… fix and polish? This is going to be a long day…

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><p><strong>Author's note: I'm sorry for the long chapter! xD I wanted to leave it off to the surprising news. Anyway, thanks for reading again! I promise it'll get better. This is just the beginning, LOL. <strong>

**And before I say anything else, I would like to say: Please, PLEASE don't flame/nag/lecture me or anything of that sort because… To be honest, I don't really know how the military works. ^^; Though, I'm researching more about it so that I can be at the very least accurate. Thanks again for reading! **


	3. Introductions

It's my first day on NEST and my first assignment is polishing and fixing the Autobots. Whoopdeedoo. Well, it shouldn't be that bad, right? After Officer Lennox left, the two men escorted me to where the Autobots were stationed. To be honest, I was a bit bummed out that I didn't get to be on the battlefield, but what can I do? Anyway, I was soon greeted by a woman in a white lab coat. She had her hair tied up to a bun and wore black, rectangular glasses. She was holding a clipboard and on top of that a stack of papers. From my perspective, she looked like a really witty so I was a bit hesitant.

"Ah, you must be Sophie Utohana?" She greeted me with a light smile. I sighed, finally in a bit of ease to know that she wasn't as strict as I thought she would be.

"Yes, I'm Sophie Utohana." I nodded and smiled back in return.

"Hi, I'm Liza Edwin and I'm the head of all the fixing and polishing of the Autobots." She offered her hand.

"Nice to meet you." I shook her hand.

"I know this isn't the most exciting job in the world, but I know it's better than nothing, right?" Liza chuckled a bit and released my hand. "So, let's not waste any more time. Come with me, please." She motioned her hand towards me, and I immediately followed.

"I'm sure you've seen some of these Autobots before, right?" She asked, flipping through the papers she had in one arm.

"Y-Yeah… On TV, but not in person…" I looked up and noticed how huge these Autobots were compared to me. Some of them looked at me curiously while I did the same. I tried not to be stupid again and randomly wave at them. Though, I couldn't help but to notice that yellow Autobot who keeps staring at me. I would occasionally look back at him, but I began to really wonder why he was staring at _me_. Was there something on my face? Do I look funny? I was getting a bit frustrated, but I kept my cool. We stopped suddenly, and Liza turned around.

"Well, there's one Autobot you've already met." She pointed her finger towards the entrance. I followed her finger and saw the charcoal pick-up truck driving in.

"I knew it was an Autobot!" I thought as my eyes widened. What made me even more surprised was the way it transformed. Every part of the truck was moving as it transformed into this tall robotic being. My mouth gaped open again.

"This is Ironhide. He specializes in weaponry." Liza gestured her hand towards him. He noticed her, and then noticed me.

"This is Sophie. She's new here and she will be helping out with some of your weaponry as well as fixing you guys up a bit." Liza, then gestured her hand towards me. I looked between her hand and Ironhide. I quickly nodded and hesitantly said,

"I-It's a pleasure to meet you again!" I bowed… Why did I bow? That was a bit embarrassing.

"Ah, so you're the girl who hit her head on me." He leaned forward and pointed at me. Oh god, now _that _was really embarrassing. "Be more careful next time…" He told me. I wasn't sure if he was pissed off or not. His tone sounded rather… annoyed. Ironhide began to walk off to, what seemed like to be, his station. After he passed by us, I slapped my palm on my forehead.

"Aha, there's no need to be embarrassed." Liza chuckled, and then quickly gestured her hand towards another Autobot. "Anyway, this is Rachet. He's the Autobots' medic."

I looked up again, seeing another huge, lime-ish colored Autobot. He looked down and sat on one knee to take a better look at me. I was a bit startled by his huge stature, so I subconsciously bowed again and said,

"M-My name's Sophie Utohana, and it's a pleasure to meet you." I looked back at him, and I could easily see that he was raising a brow- or at least I _thought_ it was a brow.

"Hm… You seem lethargic, did you get some sleep?" He asked, looking at my face even more. As of right now, I'm way more embarrassed than I thought I was.

"Um… Not really. I was up until I left to the airport early in the morning. B-But I'm alright. Don't worry about me." I brought up my hands and waved them from side to side vigorously. I also tried to give a convincing smile, but it seems like he didn't buy it.

"You should rest up a bit before getting to work; you might fall asleep on the job. Until then, I hope to work with you soon." He got up, then walked over to his station as well. He's actually a really caring guy, despite his appearance. I smiled to myself, then followed Liza again.

She introduced me to the rest of the Autobots who were available here. Overall, they were really nice and I began to feel more comfortable when I start working with them. There were only two more Autobots that Liza didn't introduce me to yet: the yellow one and the Captain of the Autobots, Optimus Prime. Suddenly Liza's pager went off and she barely looked down at it. She turned towards me and had an apologetic smile on her face.

"Ah… I'm sorry, Sophie. It seems that I'm being called to office right now. Go ahead; get yourself acquainted with the Autobots. I'll be back as fast as I can!" Before I could say anything in reply, she quickly trotted towards the stairs where I came from. I slowly pouted my lips and slouched over a bit.

"Well, I guess I could introduce myself to the other two Autobots I haven't met yet…" I thought to myself, looking around for them. I spotted the yellow Autobot (he's not so hard to miss) just ahead who was staring at me again. I shrugged, and then walked over to him. I haven't even begun to say anything and he immediately kneeled down to me. He kind of leaned toward me, so I kind of leaned back for space's sake. We both stared at each other for a while, which was kind of awkward but nonetheless interesting. Compared to the other Autobots, I noticed that he kind of had a baby face… if that is even considered to the Autobots' features at all.

"Um… I'm sorry, I haven't really introduced myself yet. I'm Sophie. Sophie Utohana. It's nice to meet you." I gave him a wry smile. When he saw my smile, I could see that he was excited and awfully happy (or at least that's what it seemed like).

"Nice to… meet you… Sophie." He nodded and made a few beeping sounds after that. The way he said that was rather… odd. It sounded like he got those words from the radio or something. I wondered what happened to his real voice.

"What's your name?" I asked. He quickly got up and tried to look at his back or something. I wasn't sure what that was about, but I figured I'd try to guess what he was going to do. He turned around and pointed to his back, which were particularly the car doors that looked like the wings of a bee. Then… I got it.

"Your name is Bee? Or… _Bumblebee_?" I asked again. This time, he was _really_ excited. He turned around to face me again. He placed his hands on his hips and nodded quickly. It seemed like I guess his name right.

"Huh… How come I didn't guess that earlier?" I gently punched the side of my head and chuckled. I heard him made a few beeping sounds as well as some whirs. It sounded like he was laughing. I chuckled bit, and I found myself smiling even more. Again, I wasn't sure why. Maybe it was because I grew a lot more comfortable with Bumblebee? Or maybe, for some reason, I'm happier around him? What… am I saying?

I heard a few clanking behind me getting closer and closer. I curiously turned around, and there I saw these massive metal feet right in front of me. A part of the legs had red flames and the rest was blue. I began to scan this Autobot's features until I looked a complete 90 degrees up. My eyes widened once again by how tall this guy was. I was about to lose my balance until he spoke.

"Bumblebee, how's your arm?"

Bumblebee made a few whirs again. "It still… aches a bit. But… I will be… fine." I looked back at Bumblebee, seeing him rubbing his right arm.

"Has Ratchet looked at it yet?" I looked back at the other Autobot again. When I got a better look at him, I soon realized who he was.

"U-Um… Are you Optimus Prime?" I blurted out, soon covering my mouth. Why did I have to ask such a stupid question? It's obvious that this guy was Optimus… though I had to make sure. He looked down at me. I couldn't see his expression very well since he was _really_ tall. He kneeled on one knee and leaned towards me.

"Yes, I am. And you are…?" He asked as he scanned me from top to bottom.

"I-I'm Sophia Utohana. I'm new here. I'll be helping you guys out with fixing some of your machinery… As well as some polishing…" I chuckled hesitantly and smiled.

"I-It's a pleasure to meet you." I added as I bowed my head. Seriously, what was up with me bowing today?

"The pleasure is all mine." He nodded. I nodded as well, then looked back at Bumblebee- predominantly his right arm. I pointed at him and said,

"I, uh… couldn't help but to listen to your conversation. You did mention Bumblebee injuring his arm somehow, right? Do you mind if I can take a look at it?"

"If you think you can help fix it, then sure." He took a quick glance at Bumblebee and then back to me.

"Well, that's what I'm here for, right?" I smiled and gave a quick wink. I turned towards Bumblebee and motioned my hand for him to come closer to me. With no problem, he nodded and kneeled down to me again. He attempted to reach out his right arm, though it seemed like it hurt when I saw him flinch. I felt a bit bad, but I couldn't let my feelings get the overcome me. I took a better look at the inside of his arm, and I could clearly see the part where he might have been hurting the most.

"Hm… Well, he did definitely tear something that's for sure. Though, I think I can fix it." I held his arm and examined it again from top to bottom. When I moved his arm slightly forward, he wailed and he flinched again.

"A-Ah, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you!" I quickly let go of his arm, and he immediately began to rub it. I frowned for a moment, then I tried looking around for anyone who could help me.

"Um… Excuse me? Is there a place where I can fix his arm? And possibly borrow some tools as well?" I called over to the nearest person who was working in Bumblebee's station. He looked at Bumblebee, and then to me. He nodded and ran to call in some assistance. I brought my arms up behind my head and collected my long, dark brown hair into a bun. I secured it with a hair tie, and I was immediately in my work mode. At this point, I completely forgot about how tired I was and focused on the situation.

I looked up and noticed Bumblebee staring at me again. I smiled gently and asked, "What is it?"

I heard a few radio statics and beeping sounds again. "Thank you…" His eyes lightened up and returned a smile… I think. I could only chuckle and smile even more.

"You're very welcome."

I gently held his arm again; I wasn't going to let go until I completely fix his injuries. As long as I help someone out, a smile is the greatest reward I can ever receive.

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><p><strong>Author's Note: Whoo! I honestly like how this is turning out! xD Well anyway, thank you for reading again! I hope you like it so far. <strong>

**As a side note- I _really_ wanted to add each Autobot introduction in this chapter, but I didn't want to make this chapter extremely long. Sooo I hope I didn't disappoint some of you because of that! .; They will be further introduced in later chapters. In the meanwhile, please wait for the next chapter! :D**


	4. Wired Connections

It wasn't long before someone came back with some men and a toolbox. These men were really… quick. They were all rolling this portable metal bleachers with a kind of countertop connected on the edge of the rail (it comes with stairs as well). Wow, these guys are creative. I blinked a few times, kind of amused by what I'm seeing. I just shrugged it off. Once they stabilized the bleacher, I began to walk up the stairs. The guy that I called out to for help brought me the toolbox and I quickly told him, "thank you". The men proceeded back to what they were doing and I turned to Bumblebee again.

"Here, just lay your arm on this." I lightly patted the countertop. Bumblebee looked over to me and did as I told him to do. I rummaged through the toolbox to find some pliers and other various utensils.

"Aha!" I took out the utensils I needed and placed them beside me. I tip-toed a bit to look at the inside of Bumblebee's arm a little more. With one hand, I held his arm down and with another I grabbed the pliers. I started to temporarily attach the tear wires piece by piece inside his arm. He occasionally flinched and wailed when I was putting pressure, but other than that, there was just this awkward silence between us. I was obviously trying to concentrate getting this part of his arm fixed, but at the same time I wanted to take this chance to get to know him. After all, Liza did _specifically_ say I should get acquainted with the Autobots. Why not start with Bumblebee?

"Hm… So, were you fighting off Decepticons when you injured your arm?" I asked casually, also switching my utensils at the same time.

Bumblebee nodded, and began to punch the air a few times with his other arm. He also made some whirs that sounded like gun shots and cannons going off. I guess he was trying to demonstrate to me what had happened.

"They hit you on the arm?" He nodded again.

"_That_ hard?" I looked at him again, only this time with a brow raised. He tilted his head from side to side, glaring up as he did so. He then nodded with a shrug. As I traced my eyes back to his arm, I pressed my lips together and this time, raised both my brows. I nodded as well and continued to reattach the wires.

"I guess the Decepticons are a lot stronger than I thought…" I muttered beneath my breath, narrowing my eyes. Bumblebee lowered his head, looking at me with his confused, but certainly glowing blue optics.

"It's nothing…" I cleared my throat before continuing. "Uh, say… is it alright if I just call you 'Bee' from now on? I don't want it to be a hassle saying the whole name—N-No offense or anything…" A light chuckle followed after my feign smile. The sound of radio static came out of him and he nodded.

"…It's all good!" He brought a thumbs up. I brought my head up and glared at him for a few moments. After blinking briskly for a number of times, I began to burst out into laughter. Though, when everyone started to stare at me, I quickly bit my bottom lip and proceeded to reattach the wires. For some reason, I thought that was really funny. It was probably the way Bee said it. Now that I think about it, I also began to realize that he had a more sense of humor than the other Autobots—well, actually, Bee is placed in second. The twins top the sense of humor meter among the Autobots here. What were their names again? Skids and Mudflap… I think.

"Just a few more pieces to go, Bee." I told him with traces of my laughter still in my voice. I heard the clanking of footsteps approaching us. I looked over to see who it was; it was Rachet.

"Hm? What are you doing?" He asked, looking over to me.

"Oh, I'm just reattaching some of the wires in Bumblebee's arm-" I cut myself off and gasped quietly. I vaguely remembered Liza saying something about Rachet- wasn't he a medic? Oh, shoot. "A-Ah! I didn't mean to take your job, or anything! I just wanted to temporarily fix his arm so that he won't be in pain anymore…" I swiftly took my hand out of Bee's arm and surrendered my hands by putting them up. Rachet glared at me for a moment, then he began to laugh.

"Oh no. It's alright. I just wanted to know what you were doing, is all." He looked over at Bee's arm, scanning it up to down with his glowing, blue optics. "May I take a look?" He asked, looking over to me again.

"Y-Yeah, of course!" I nodded my head promptly, and Rachet then proceeded to look at Bee's arm. He held Bee's arm and squinted one of his optics to get a better look of the wires inside. I saw him nod, which kind of made me anxious of what he thought. For one, I'm no Autobot medic, that's for sure; Second, I don't really know the Autobot anatomy. I only know to how fix mechanical objects, and Bee is a mechanical being. I could fix his arm, but I wouldn't know if my work would last long. These Autobots are far more advanced than our own mechanical devices. At this point, I was eager to know how well I fixed Bee's arm, or if I even fixed it at all.

"Hm… This is pretty good for your first day here." Rachet looked at me rather pleasantly and motioned his hand at me to come take a look at Bee's arm. Still holding his arm, Rachet pointed to the wires I was just reattaching.

"Honestly, I was going to reattach the wires as well, but with your small hands and stature you can easily be precise on the reattachments." He nodded, as if he was impressed. I think he was, actually. For that, I released a long, but relieving sigh.

"What's wrong? You did a good job." He raised a brow at me. Seeing his humanly expression made me chuckle.

"Nothing's wrong. I'm just glad I was able to help… and to get it right." I shyly cupped my hands behind my back, and I swayed my upper torso from side to side. "Though, will my reattachments stay on for a while? Or is this only temporary?" I stopped swaying and looked at Rachet towering over me. I couldn't help but to ask. I was intrigued to know more about the Autobot anatomy.

"Like I said, with your precise work, the reattachments will stay for a long while." He paused, gently placing Bee's arm back onto the countertop. I glared at Bee, and he glared at me back. Then we both glared at Rachet as if he was telling us an exciting bedtime story- only, this is really just another biology lesson on the Autobot anatomy. "Although we, Autobots, are far more technological advanced beings, we're not too different from humans anatomically. For example, Bumblebee's wires tear in his arm. It's no different than a human pulling a muscle. Though, the difference is that humans have these cell regeneration properties, am I right?" Rachet asked.

"Yeah, that's right." I nodded.

"As for Autobots, we have to manually fix the tear in our wires. Though, the thing that humans and Autobots have in common is our ability to adapt to our injuries. Our wounds heal, and we become stronger." He gazed at the palm of his hand, and then slowly clenched it into a tight fist.

"We're more than meets the eye, huh…?" Cheesy phrase, I know, but it's true. Although humans and Autobots are complete different beings with different appearances, we share a lot of similarities. We were all created for a purpose, and that's to adapt and to survive.

"Yeah. Ha, you know, that's exactly what Optimus would say." Rachet loosened his fist to turn into a pointed finger, in which he directed it towards me. My eyes widened, slowly finding my cheeks flushing at his remark. I laughed hesitantly as I reached my hand at the back of my neck and rubbed it.

"R-Really? I-I mean, it's true isn't it?" I averted my gaze from both Rachet and Bee, as well as turning my head away from them. I could hear Bee chuckling with the whirs he made. I began to vigorously rub the back of my neck now, and I refused to look at them. Oh, how I felt so embarrassed.

"Sophie!" It was Liza. I heard her voice echo throughout the vicinity. I turned mid-way to see Liza trotting towards us.

"Jeez, I haven't run like that in a while…" Liza whispered, slouched over and lowering her head as she panted heavily. Of course, Rachet looked at her with much concern and asked,

"You shouldn't push yourself too hard. If it's Sophie you're worried about, she's doing just fine." He nodded, and glanced at me. I think I saw I smile on his face, though I just smiled back anyway.

"R-Really…? Ah, I was worried for a second… there…" Liza brought her head up and smiled gently towards me. She noticed the metal bleacher was set up, as well as Bee's arm lying on the countertop. A brow was raised on her forehead and turned her attention towards me again. "Did you… fix his arm?"

"Y-Yeah—Oh, I hope that's alright with you."

"It's okay. It's your job, right? …May I take a look?" As usual, Liza gave me a friendly smile and walked on the stairs behind me. Before she could even take a peek, Rachet spoke out,

"She did an excellent job. As a matter of fact, I may need her help with a project I'm doing for the Autobots sometime soon; if you don't mind."

I immediately looked at Rachet, wide eyed and all. I was… quite surprised. Happy, but overall surprised. I can't believe he made me his apprentice of some sort just because I fixed Bee's arm. Then again, there were many elements surrounding the wires in Bee's arm that made it a tad bit difficult to do the reattachments. I was lucky to even fix it right. I had to wonder though: what was this 'project' Rachet had mentioned? I'm even more interested to know more about the Autobots now. After that moment, Rachet, Bee, and Liza looked at me all at the same time. I blinked, not sure of what to say. There was an awkward silence.

"I… I don't mind. That's actually rather _great_." Liza replied, quickly glancing up at Rachet, and then immediately looked at me again. I guess she was also surprised- considering I'm practically an assistant to one of the Autobots now. All I could really do was smile... although, it was beginning to get a little _too_ awkward.

"U-Uh… Can you move your arm now, Bee?" I cleared my throat, and glared at Bee, who was just staring at me again. He blinked a few times and looked elsewhere for a moment. He looked at his arm and slowly extended it forward. I was hoping that he wouldn't flinch or show any hints of pain. Just as I had hoped, he didn't. He started punch the air like he did previously with his other arm. I can see the excitement back into those glowing optics again. A high pitched whir came out of him, almost like a purr, really, and he nodded ever so happily. I chuckled, and gave a warm smile.

"Heehee, I'm glad I got to fix it." I merely replied, and nodded as well.

"Ah, well… I must be going back. Don't forget, Sophie… I'll need your assistance soon. Until then, rest early, alright?" Rachet announced, as he got back up on his legs. He nodded towards Liza while she did the same. After he left, Liza immediately back to me again.

"Woooow. You impressed me a lot, Sophie. I'm really looking forward to working with you." Liza walked down the metal stairs and placed her arm around my shoulder from behind. I giggled a bit.

"Th-Thanks…" I bashfully replied.

"Keep this up, and you'll be in the battlefield in no time!" She released her arm and briefly patted me on the shoulder. "Hm… well, to start, you can begin polishing Bumblebee if you'd like. In the meantime, I'll be facilitating around the area. If you need me, just call my name!" She patted my shoulder once more, and proceeded to walk past me. I watched her walk to the other station beside Bee's. I began to wonder… if I _really_ wanted to fight alongside the Autobots. I know that was my intention before I was I given a different assignment, but seeing as the way things turned out, I'm starting to think that fixing the Autobots wouldn't be that bad. As a matter of fact, I think I would get to know them more just by helping fix any mechanical problems with their weapons. I suddenly heard Bee's whirs again, and I turned around. He had this innocent look on his face, as if he was asking, "are you alright?". My eyes narrowed and a small smile grew on my face. I walked up onto the stairs of the bleachers, leaning myself against the countertop. Placing one arm flat on the countertop, I reached my other hand out and patted Bee's arm.

"I'm alright… I'm a bit tired, but there's really no need to worry about me." I momentarily closed my eyes and gave a gentle smile. When I opened my eyes again, Bee was leaning towards me… and looked at me in a rather deep concern. Don't ask me why, but I think he began to be quite fond of me. I felt a bit bashful, seeing as I don't know what makes me different compared to the other humans working here. I heard radio static from Bee again; I think he's going to lecture me for not sleeping earlier or something.

"If there's anything… bothering… you… You can tell me! I'll always… be here to… listen."

My eyes widened once again- how Bee always surprises me with the words that I least expected from him! His radiant, blue optics looked into my plain, auburn hues. I can clearly see the kindness in him, and the concern he has for others. I've never really met anyone who was that caring… for that matter, a robotic being. My lips parted a little, as if I was going to say something in reply, but I couldn't find the words to say what I wanted to say. I narrowed my eyes a little, and a long sigh escaped through my lips. Bee tilted his head a little, and whirred again. I lowered my head, hiding the timid expression on my face. With my hand still on his arm, I patted it lightly. I lowered my voice, not so much that it was a whisper. I only replied,

"…Thank you."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: Once again, thank you for reading! Your reviews really mean a lot to me. :) It's a great motivator, actually. Haha! <strong>

**Anyway, now I grew kind of fond of Rachet ever since I let him be in this chapter. He's kinda like a father figure for Sophie (oooh, spoiler? LOL. I'm not even sure, myself. Hahaha!). And Bumblebee... Whoo! Stuff is gonna go down/quite cute in the next couple of chapters! I have a prediction. :3 **

**Thanks once again, and please stay tuned for the next chapter! **


	5. Nostalgia

I was a few hours or so into my new job, just polishing Bee's yellow armor. Prior to this, I was given: gloves, car polisher, a few reusable polisher pads, and a microfiber rag. Honestly, I didn't know where to start. Bee might be one of the smaller Autobots here, but he's still huge compared to me. Eventually, I just started polishing his arm since it was the closest to me at the time.

I was beginning to get sleepy, and I yawned while wiping Bee's lower arm with the rag. Polishing is quite a work out. I wiped the beads of sweat underneath my straight bangs with the back of my wrist.

"Are you alright?" Bee asked through the radio. I glanced up at him, probably looking more tired than I thought I was.

"Yeah… I told you, don't worry about me. I'll be…" A yawn squeezed its way in between my sentence, and I continued, "… just fine." Though, my words didn't seem to convince him. I mean, I would totally understand. If someone was clearly sleepy and they told me they were fine, I would most definitely not believe them. He shook his head, and with this free hand, he waved his finger at me.

"I think you should… take a break…." He seemed to have raised a brow and whirred again. Then, I had no idea what happened to me next. I suppose at this point I was becoming ridiculously delirious. I took my hands off his arm and released the rag onto the countertop. My vision was a bit blurred, but I managed to point straight at Bee.

"I'm a hard-headed woman! It'll take you more than that to make me take a stupid break!" I motioned myself back and forth; I think my balance was slowly deteriorating. Bee looked at me with even more concern now, and also a bit of disbelief. Though, I have to admit, I wouldn't normally act like this. I would rather not be like this at all. Maybe Bee and Rachet was right. Maybe I did need some sleep. My lips parted again as I was about to say something, but the whole area echoed with an important message:

_Autobots, please assemble immediately towards the has been another Decepticon incursion on the outskirts of the city; further details will be explained once everyone has gathered. _

This message slightly woke me up. I looked up at Bee, and he nodded. He was looking at something behind me, so I curiously turned around to see who it was; it was Ironhide.

"Ready to take on some Decepticon punks?" Ironhide asked, clenching his fist almost enthusiastically.

"You know it!" Bee responded through the radio. Ironhide proceeded to transforming into his alt. form. I watched him drive off along with the rest of the Autobots towards the exit. I turned towards Bee again, who already stood up and glared down at me.

"…Kick some ass for me, will ya?" I asked, giving him a smirk. He nodded quickly and gave me a thumbs up. My smile grew once again, and I watched him transform to his alt. form- which was a _very_ sleek, yellow Camaro. I gotta say, it's pretty impressive how the Autobots transform from this huge, robotic being to a standard sized vehicle. The ability to blend in as a contemporary piece of technology… It makes me wonder what their planet must have been like, or how it looked like.

When Bee drove away, I decided to try and listen in on their mission objectives. I looked around me to see there was anyone watching me, but no one was really there. The only people there were either working on repairs or too concentrated looking at the computer screen. As quietly as I could, I jumped up onto the metal countertop; although I'm pretty sure I wasn't supposed to do that. I swung my legs around to the other side of the countertop, and I sat on the edge of it. I looked back again to see if anyone saw me. When I realized the coast was clear, I turned around again to get a better view of what was going on.

"Maybe the Decepticons must be trying to get something from within the city."

"The question is: What?"

"It could be another Energon source…"

"Why would they need that?"

"They must really want it…"

I wasn't sure who was speaking since the Autobots were all in their alt. forms, and I wasn't sure what they were talking about. Though, I was starting to feel slightly apprehensive. Then, as if on cue, my left arm suddenly throbbed with a sharp pain. I grimaced and moaned a bit. It had only lasted for a millisecond, but in that moment it was as if something was trying to squeeze the life out of my arm. I pulled up my short sleeve, and I furrowed my brows.

"It's… getting worse." I thought. What was on my arm… was a little more than half of a metal band that implanted itself into my skin. I watched it as the edge of the band grew a new, sharp piece of metal. "…Dammit." I cursed, angrily pulling down my sleeve. I lowered my head and looked at the palm of my left hand. Images of _that_ night appeared in my mind like a slideshow. It was _that_ night… That gave me this metal band on my arm. Ever since _that_ night, when I touched the stone, this band has been growing progressively. The pain began to increase the more I remember. I furrowed my brows even more, and eventually squeezed my eyelids tight. "Please… Let this stop… let this stop… let this stop…" I whispered repeatedly. I tried opening my eyes, but everything was getting blurry. My ears began to ring with the echoes of voices who were speaking the same language from _that _night. My head began to feel like it was getting crush by a massive force. I brought my hands to my head, and I clenched onto my hair. "What… What is this? What's going on? Why am I feeling this way? I shouldn't be this—"

_You are truthfully the most foolish human being. With your powers, Lord Megatron will rise up once again._

"H-Huh…?"

Before I knew it… I blacked out.

I couldn't see anything. Though, I definitely heard myself fall on the metal countertop. I also heard familiar voices. Those voices made me feel a bit at ease.

"_Sophie! Sophie, are you okay?_"

I heard Liza yell while her sneakers screeched against the floor. I wanted to tell her I was fine, but I couldn't move. It was as if I was… paralyzed.

I heard the clanking of metal and a voice along with it; I think it was Rachet.

"_What happened?_"

"_I'm not sure, but I think she passed out…_"

"_I told her to rest. I guess she doesn't take orders very well, in consideration to her heath._"

Then, I heard familiar whirs. It was Bee.

"_I can't just… leave… her!_"

Bee sounded really worried. Geez, now I feel really bad. I wish I could do something, but I can't do anything. Just lay here and listen to them worry about me. I wish I could at least given them a smile- given _Bee_ a smile.

"_You guys… go ahead! I'll be right behind ya! I will… stay with her… until she.. wakes up._"

He's so… sweet. He deserves a smile. I can't let him down, not like this.

"Hn…"

I began to see a light. It was blurry, but bright. I opened my eyes slowly and blinked a few times. I saw something yellow from the corner of my eye, and I turned my head to the side. There, I saw Bee sitting down in his normal, robot form. He was staring at the floor in deep contemplation.

"…Bee?" I asked softly.

He immediately snapped out of his thoughts and looked at me. He leaned over, staring at me with his glowing blue optics again. He looked super worried, but also relieved at the same time. I smiled gently and reached my hand over to pat one of his fingers.

"I'm sorry that I worried you..." I told him. He briefly averted his gaze, and looked at me again.

"What happened to you? You suddenly… passed out." He asked, radio statics following after. I averted my gaze as well, trying to remember what had happened. And in an instant, I had a quick flashback. I gasped; my eyes widened for a moment, particularly remembering the last part of the flashback. '_With your powers,Lord Megatron will rise up once again_'? What does that… mean? Bee noticed my frightened expression, and turned his upper torso towards me. I didn't want him to worry again, so I just merely closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. I paused momentarily, let out a long sigh, and sat up. I casually rubbed the back of my neck, my eyes still averted from Bee's.

"I… I don't really remember." I lied. "Heh, you and Rachet were right. I should have taken a break or something. I guess I was so tired that I… you know, passed out." I gave a hesitant chuckle. "But… seriously, I'm fine now. There's no need for you to worry anymore." I feigned a smile. He made a whir, almost sounding like a "hmmm…".

"Well, if… what you say is… true… then I won't worry." He shrugged. "Just as long as… you're not hurt… I'll be okay." His optics lit up in a happier expression. I felt guilty seeing him pity me like this. I want to tell him about the metal band on my arm, but I can't- not yet, at least. All that has happened today was already too much for me to handle. I released my hand off the back of my neck, and I held the area of my arm where the band was. I cleared my throat, trying to change to subject.

"Y-You… didn't go with the rest of the Autobots?" I asked, scanning the place. There were no Autobots in sight, except for Bee of course. He nodded in response to my question.

"You didn't go… because you wanted to stay with me?" I asked again as I looked up at him. I started to feel the guilt creeping up my throat. He nodded once more with a hum that sounded like "mm-hmm".

"But… Liza is here- and the rest of the humans. They could have watched over me instead. So it's alright if you wanted to go—"

"I didn't want… to leave until I knew… for sure that… you were alright." Bee leaned in closer to me, practically a few feet away from my face. I tried to look away, but his optics caught my sight. I just stared at him, his optics. I didn't know what else to say, or what to feel in that matter. A lot of things have happened today. Honestly, I had a mixture of emotions boiling inside me. Though, when I look at how gentle his optics are, all of that seem to melt away. Yes, I know. That was a bit cheesy, but there's no other way to describe it. Well, maybe there is another way: Bee always finds the right ways to make me feel better… emotionally, at least.

"You know, you've had a long day- why don't you go home for the night?" I heard Liza's voice approaching towards us. I looked for the source of her voice, and she was already walking up the stairs of the bleachers. "Rachet convinced me to have you rest properly as soon as you wake up, so you have my permission to leave." She smiled gently, reaching out her hand and patted my shoulder.

"Are you… sure?" I asked.

"Of course." She nodded, then glanced at Bee. "Bumblebee, if you don't mind, could you please take Sophie home?" Bee chirped rather happily and nodded.

"No problem, ma'am." He replied, whirs following after.

"B-But I—" I simultaneously looked between Liza and Bee, a bit confused and rushed. Liza leaned towards me. She had a concerned expression on her face.

"Don't worry about things here; for now, just worry about yourself." She continued to stare at me for a while. I nodded slowly, and she smiled again. "Don't be late to work tomorrow, alright?" She patted my shoulder once more, and started walking down the stairs again.

"Th-Thank you, Liza!" I yelled. Liza merely waved her hand from behind. I could tell she was smiling.

"…So, do you know where I live, Bee?" I glanced up at Bee.

"I could… check the… coordinates."

"Gosh, you're such a stalker." I teased sarcastically, chuckling at my own joke. Bee, on the other hand, was a bit frantic and tried to come up with a better come-back. Though, before he could spit out anything, I told him, "Hey, I'm only kidding. You don't have to take things too seriously. Let loose a bit, alright?" I chuckled and a reassuring grin grew on my face. Bee hummed a long sigh, and then eventually chuckled as well.

"Sorry… all of these important… missions… get to my head… sometimes."

"Heh, well it's alright. We all… have those days." I narrowed my eyes, clenching my arm a bit harder. "Ah, well… you should probably take me home. We wouldn't want to stay for Rachet's medical lecture, won't we?" I laughed hesitantly. Bee exhaled to, what seemed like, a brief laugh and hummed "of course". As soon as I knew it, he was already transforming to his alt. form. I watched him transform into every detail to compact himself into this yellow Camaro. Every time, this kind of thing amuses me. Bee honked a couple of times, which didn't fail to make me laugh once more.

"Okay, okay… I'm getting in." At this moment, I was more balanced enough to jump off the edge of the countertop, and I landed safely onto the floor. I ran to the other side of Bee to get in the passenger's seat. Bee opened the door for me, and I smirked. "Hmm… You're quite a gentleman." I teased again before getting inside. Bee began switching the radio stations and replied,

"Why- of course, milady."

I closed the door beside me, sat down onto the seat, and we were drove out of the building. Once we hit the street, Bee started to change the radio station yet again to a random song,

_No need to ask, he's a smooth operator. Smooth operator. Smooth operator~_

"Pfft—is that really necessary?" I burst into a tickling laughter. "Sure you are, Bee… Sure." I continued sarcastically, the traces of my laughter still remained in my voice. Bee made a few defeated whirs and hummed, "whatever".

"Heh heh…" I smiled gently to myself, then looked out the window. I placed my elbow on the arm rest of the door. I leaned towards the window to look at the sky from above. "… Even if I'm in a different place, I still can't see the stars that clearly. Not since…" I stopped myself. I was about to mention _it_, but I managed to stop myself. I pressed my lips together and held onto my arm again. Bee noticed my uncomfortable expression and stopped the radio. It was quiet. The only sounds I heard was Bee's moving disguise and people talking among themselves on the streets. Bee began to change the radio stations again.

"Since… what?" He tried to continue my sentence, but I didn't say anything. I didn't even move.

"…Sophie?"

"… Since I was back in California; when I was in an orphanage." I didn't move all that much; I only lowered my head and watched the citizens walk along the sidewalk.

"…" Bee didn't respond this time. He wanted to know _more_.

"Heh, could you believe my dad just left me in an orphanage? Right after I arrived to the U.S. from Japan? Yeah, I couldn't believe it either." I paused, giving a long sigh. "I will never really understand why he left me, but I'm sorta glad he did. I don't remember much about living in Japan. I was only 5 when I left that country, but I do remember the tension between my parents. The negativity between them was so strong, my dad decided to leave my mom and taking me with him. Tough love, I guess…" A slanted smile grew on my face. I smiled at how ridiculous I was beginning to sound, and I was beginning to show how _weak_ I really am. "Well, anyway, when I was at the orphanage, my best friend and I would always look at the stars through our window. I remember the stars being so clear. It was bright enough to see its light blink. Those days were the best…" The humiliated smile on my face soon transformed into a nostalgic smile. "Despite not having a real family, I felt like the stars and my best friend were enough to make me happy." I let go of my arm, and gave myself a tight hug.

"I feel ya..." Bee replied through the radio.

"O-Oh… yeah, I almost forgot about what had happened to your planet. I'm sorry… about that…" For a moment I gazed at the radio, and then quickly averted my gaze.

"It's okay. Even though… my planet… is gone… my new home is here… on Earth." Even though he spoke through the radio, I could tell he was in the slightest bit sad just talking about it.

"…Do you miss your home? Your planet, I mean?" I had to ask. I just _had_ to ask subconsciously. He didn't respond for a while, until the radio started changing stations again.

"Of course I do… but there's no way… to bring it back…" My eyes slowly found its way towards the radio. The way Bee said that made me frown a bit. A whole civilization wiped off the face of a single planet, and then having that being destroyed by its own inhabitance- I would imagine it being extremely depressing. Though, the way wars and such are turning out here on Earth, our planet _might_ just end up like how Bee's planet ended.

"It's okay, though… We all have to… adapt to survive… right?" He was right. I'm sure nothing will replace his planet, but having a home with a family of the remaining Autobots is the very least satisfying. I only wish I knew what it's like to have a _real_ family.

"…You're right." I narrowed my eyes, and I leaned back against the passenger seat. "After all, I've been doing that all my life." I took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. I turned my head slightly to the side, trying to find the stars again while Bee was navigating his way to my house- or rather Susie's condo. After that, there was just silence between us throughout the rest of the car ride. I think we were both tired after this long day we've had. Not only that, but we were both feeling the nostalgia our past. Before I knew it, we were already at the apartment. Man, I wished that drive was longer.

"We're here." Bee parked right in front of the condo. I unbuckled my seatbelt and held onto the door handle.

"Thanks for taking me home, Bee. And more importantly, thanks for listening." I smiled gently at the radio, and I tried to open the door. However, as I was doing so, Bee locked the door.

"…What's wrong?" I asked, but there was no response. I waited, letting go of the door handle. I heard the radio stations changing once more, and he played a song.

_You've got a friend in me. You've got troubles, and I got 'em too. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you. We stick together and we see it through 'cause you've got a friend in me._

My eyes widened a bit, and I only stared at the radio. Of course, the meaning of the song wasn't too hard to figure out, but it was enough to make me realize how much Bee wanted me to be his friend. I mean, when we had just met I already considered him my friend since he was so nice to me. I guess… I've never really grasped the real importance of friendship until now.

"Heh… You've got a friend in me, too." I smiled, reaching my hand out to the radio and touched the screen with my fingertips. "Even if we just met, I can already tell that you're a great friend. Not just to me, but to the Autobots as well. A-And for that… thank you." I felt like a broken record, but what I said to him was true. Bee hummed excitedly, and finally unlocked the door. I opened the door, and closed it behind me. "See you tomorrow." I waved at Bee, and continued to walk to the gate of the condo. Right after I unlocked the gate and got inside the yard, I heard Bee honking numerous times. After a dramatic day, a grin easily grew on my face again.

"Bye, Bee!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: WHOO! I am glad this chapter is over with. LOL. Haha, and I'm sorry for the wait (as well as the long chapter). I have been unexpectedly busy lately. 3; Anywho and anyhow, I hope you enjoyed this story so far! If it's a bit confusing... I apologize. ;u; It's supposed to be confusing, LOL. <strong>

**Ooh, get ready for more plot twists (maybe?) and such. Haha. **

**With that said, thanks for reading this chapter! :D **


	6. Secrets

After Bee left, the energy I momentarily had slowly began to drain from my body. I walked slowly through the small yard path, and knocked on the door. Since Susie never gave me the spare keys, I was left waiting outside. Though, it wasn't long before I could hear Susie's footsteps; she was obviously running towards the door. She almost flung the door wide open and stared at me with her widened eyes. I blinked curiously at her, and I couldn't help but to sigh.

"If you'll excuse me, Susie… I would like to crawl into my nice, soft bed—" Before I could even finish my sentence, Susie grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me quite vigorously.

"Sophie! I've been worried sick about you!" After a few shakes, she gave me a big, almost suffocating hug.

"W-What are you—?"

"NEST called and they said you passed out! They told me not to worry, but I couldn't help it! I wanted to wait for you until you came home alright and safe—!"

"Susie, I'm fine now! C-Can you please just let go of me? I can't breathe!" I shook her arm, and she quickly let go of me. She looked at me in the eyes again, and gave me a pout. I couldn't stay frustrated at her forever, not when she's looking at me like this. I patted her shoulder, and smiled softly. "Really, Susie. I'm okay. I just need some sleep, alright?"

"Hmm… Alright." She replied in defeat, and she stepped aside to let me walk inside. I yawned loudly as I dragged my legs lazily towards the stairs. "By the way, who took you home?" Susie asked as I heard her shut the door behind her, and then locked it. I stopped right before I set my foot on the stairs, and I chuckled quietly to myself.

"Bumblebee."

"W-What…? W-Who is that—Wait a minute, Sophie! Is this your new crush from work or something?" I can tell Susie was flailing her arms while she said that. That was another thing that she has always been doing. She always wanted to know this kind of stuff from me- if I finally got myself a boyfriend or if I like someone. Usually, I would just brush it off and walk away from the topic, but for some reason I began to feel my cheeks burn up. This was… unusual. I've never really been super interested in guys, like Susie over here. Let alone even _blush_. Sure, I would think some guys are attractive, but I would never have the guts to actually go after them. Though, for some reason, I was beginning to feel bashful about this topic. Then, for some reason, my heart started to flutter. I'm not sure what to think of this feeling exactly, but it was starting to embarrass me to the MAX. I covered the bottom half of my face with my palm and felt the heat intensify on my face.

"I… I'm not gonna answer that question!" I squeaked out, and then ran up the stairs as fast as I could. From upstairs, I could hear Susie's voice echo, "Awww! Come on! You can tell me! I wanna know, dammit! …Wait, I saved you some dinner and you're not going to eat it? Hey! Are you even listening to me?"

I didn't even bother to answer. I just swiftly made my way through the stacks of boxes that were cluttering up the second floor. I finally got inside my room, turned on the light switch, and shut the door immediately behind me. I leaned my back against the door, hitting my head on it. I took in some deep breaths to calm myself down, especially to slow down my racing heart rate. I slowly slid down to the wooden floor and sat there for a few minutes. I just stared at the floor. Pondering. What was wrong with me? I mean, the way I was feeling wasn't entirely bad. It's actually pretty good… I think. The thought of Bee and 'crush' just didn't really register in my mind until now. Could it be the reason why I was smiling so much was because I have a crush on Bee…? How does that even work? A human and an Autobot…? I just kept staring at the floor, pressing my lips together and feeling my cheeks burn a lot more. There was just this awkward silence.

"…Goodness gracious, I think I need some sleep." I slapped my forehead- pretty hard. I slid my hand down my face, and I covered half of it with my hand for a brief yawn and a distressed moan. I brought myself up and dragged my feet to the mattress on the floor. I scoped around my nearly empty room for a blanket. I rummaged through the nearest box to find a thin, polka dot blanket. I threw it on my mattress, and I fell on my knees to let myself roll safely onto it. I lay there, staring at my ceiling. I couldn't get the thought of Bee out of my mind. The thought was making me feel… weird.

"Gah! And we only met today! What the heck is up with that?" I blurted out once more, grabbing the blanket from beneath me and dropped it on my face. I gave another moan, and rolled myself to lie on my side. I pulled the blanket down to only expose the top half of my face. I blinked numerous times before the sleepiness took over me. I slowly closed my eyes, and the last thing I thought was,

"Well, at least he's not a jerk; he's a gentleman…"

* * *

><p>The next morning came, and I was awakened by the sun's light again. I wiped my eyes, and yawned loudly. I completely forgot I had my eye liner on, but I didn't care. I stretched my arms and my legs, and I sat up to look out the window. It was a nice day; there were no clouds in sight. Ah, and here I thought it was such a perfect way to wake up from a good sleep. Of course, it had only lasted until my cell phone rang with the <em>I Caught Myself <em>ringtone. I gave out a long sigh and reached over to the other side of the mattress to grab my phone. I read the caller ID. It was unknown. I cautiously slid my phone open and answered,

"…Hello?"

"Ah, Sophie. Thank goodness you're awake. Are you okay now?" It was Liza.

"O-Oh, yeah. Better than ever. Um… what's up?" I sat up straight and cleared my morning voice.

"Oh, nothing really. I just wanted to make sure you were alright. Anyway, I'm sorry if I woke you up, but we need more assistance here. Do you mind if you can come here soon?"

"…Um, yeah. Sure. The thing is… I don't have a car yet." I laughed hesitantly, hoping Liza wouldn't yell at me- though I doubt she would. She seems too nice to do that; at least, that's what I thought she seemed like.

"Hmm…" Liza paused. She sounded a bit annoyed. I couldn't blame her. "Well, would you like to have a ride until you do?"

"Please…?" Gah, I'm on my second day of actual work, and I can't even get there because I don't have car yet. It makes me wonder why NEST even keeps me if all I do is cause trouble to them. Oh, well. I guess I'm fortunate. "I'm really sorry about the inconvenience… I'll work harder today."

"It's alright, Sophie. Goodness, you worry too much." Liza chuckled, and she began to talk to someone off the phone. She came back, and I had a feeling that she was giving me some kind of devious smile. "Well, Bumblebee over here has offered to pick you up. Are you alright with that?"

My face began to burn again, and my heart began to race a little faster.

"U-Um… Y-Yeah. It's alright with me! Y-Yeah!" I stuttered, combing through my hair with my hands. I began to feel a bit nervous.

"Alright, well he should be there around 15 minutes or so. Be ready by then, and calm down, alright?" Liza then continued to talk off the phone. Before I could say anything, she hung up on me. Knowing Bee, he would probably be here earlier than 15 minutes. I kicked the blanked off of my feet and dashed out of my room and into the bathroom. There, I quickly threw off my clothes and got myself in the shower. I was in there for about 5 minutes and I wrapped a towel around me. I continued by running back and forth between my room and the bathroom. I threw on a few clothes I found in one of the open boxes and I started to apply my make-up.

"Hey, Sophie!" Susie knocked on my door.

"Can't talk. I have to get ready for work!" I yelled, a bit frustrated by the pressure of time.

"I know… But there's someone in a yellow camaro waiting outside our house."

"Shoot! He got here earlier than I expected…" I mumbled, quickly applying my eyeliner. I grabbed a comb and combed through my damp hair. I opened the door, and found Susie standing right in front of me with a grin on her face.

"Susie, I really don't have time for this!" I told her, quickly passing her shoulder and went inside my room. I grabbed my phone on my bed and shoved it in my pocket. I also grabbed a few $10 bills for lunch and put them in another pocket. I dashed out of my room and closed the door behind me.

"Is that your crush outside, Sophie?" She asked with the grin still on her face. I ran down the stairs and got to the door.

"Come on, Sophie! Can I see him? Is he cute?"

"Susie! Please, he's just a friend! And, no, you can't see him… not yet!" I didn't even bother to turn around and properly say good-bye. I opened the door and ran down the path.

"You're not gonna get breakfast?"

"I'll get some on the way. Now, bye!" I brought my hand up and waved at her from behind. Just as Susie told me, Bee was parked right in front of our condo. Before Susie could even yell out anything else embarrassing, I opened Bee's door and immediately closed it behind me. I felt Bee shake a little, as if he was trying to contain his laughter.

"Hey, don't laugh at me! I tried to get ready as fast as I could…" I nearly yelled, buckling my seat belt. I leaned back against the passenger seat, and sighed.

"Rough morning?" Bee asked as he changed through the radio stations.

"You could say that…" I yawned and closed my eyes. "Well, let's not make Liza wait any longer. Let's go."

"You're not going to… eat something?" He asked.

"I'm fine—" At that same moment, my stomach growled pretty loud. We were both silent… until I started to laugh. "…On second thought, let's make a quick stop to Starbucks."

"Aye-aye, Captain!"

Bee immediately started the engine and we were on our way to Starbucks. Conveniently, there was one just a block away from the NEST HQ. I quickly bought a coffee and a scone, and I ran back to Bee. I asked him if it was alright to eat inside his alt. form, and he promptly proceeded to answer an "mm-hmm". Luckily, I devoured my scone before we reached NEST HQ. When we got there, Bee honked at the security guards outside. They examined the exterior of Bee's alt. form, and then they quickly nodded. They opened the gates for us. We drove in towards the back where we could see a visual of the 'gigantic garage of Autobots'. Bee pulled over as soon as we entered the premises and opened the passenger door. I unbuckled my seatbelt and got out. He soon drove passed me, and I watched him go into his station again.

"Fine, no 'bye'?" I thought aloud.

"Sophie!" I heard Liza's voice call out to me from behind. I was startled by her voice, and I turned around immediately. Yet again, I see her with the stacks of paper in one of her arms.

"Good morning." I smiled with a faint chuckle.

"Good morning to you, too!" She replied rather excitingly. "Well, lucky for you, you'll be helping out Optimus with his weaponry… and maybe polish him a bit? Though, he's a bit stubborn with that, despite offering it to him." Liza shrugged, and then smiled gently.

"Optimus… Wait, doesn't he have a mission with the rest of the Autobots?" I asked.

"Not at the moment. We're still looking for some possible Decepticon threats. So take this time to get to know him." She patted my shoulder and gently turned me towards Optimus. He was already in his normal form and talking with some of the Autobots in their stations. I know I mentioned this before, but this guy is _huge_. No wonder he's the leader of the Autobots. His stature looked almost intimidating. I gulped rather loudly, and walked with Liza towards him. When we got to where he was, the other Autobot, Ironhide, noticed us. He pointed at us and made a brief, "hmm". Optimus followed Ironhide's finger, and then looked at us.

"Optimus, sir, Sophie is here." Liza gestured her hand towards me. I panicked a bit, and I bowed my head.

"N-Nice to meet you again…" I said shyly.

"She will be helping you with your weaponry today." Liza explained as she patted my shoulder.

"Alright, then. We will talk later… Ironhide, Arcee." Optimus looked back at the other Autobots, and they nodded. Then, all three of us walked back to Optimus' station. Liza led me up the metal stairs of the stand. This stand was definitely taller than the one I was on yesterday. When we got to the top platform, there were already toolboxes set up for me to use as well as some people walking back and forth.

" Here you are. You have everything you need?" Liza asked.

"Um… Yeah, I think this is all I'll need… for now." I looked at the toolboxes, and back at Liza.

"Well, then. He's all yours." Liza nodded to Optimus, while he did the same in return. She started to walk away, and I blurted out,

"L-Liza… You didn't even tell me what exactly I should do with Optimus' weaponry…"

"Why don't you ask _him_ yourself?" She smirked at me before heading down the stairs again.

"… Oh, yeah. Like that helps…" I muttered to myself, slouching over a bit. A long, but silent sigh escaped through my lips. I heard Optimus stepping closer and asked me,

"Is there a problem?" I stood up straight immediately, as if a jolt of electricity traveled throughout my whole body. I twirled myself around and found Optimus leaning towards me. I've never really noticed this before, but his eyes- err, well his optics, looked just as gentle as Bee's. Since he's so tall, I wasn't able to see it before. At least his optics made him seem less intimidating.

"N-No… It's nothing." I smiled, and I rubbed the back of my neck hesitantly. I looked at Optimus, who continued to stare at me quite concernedly. Really, what was up with people worrying about me lately…? I hate having anyone worry about me. After all, I'm just a human. Only, I'm a human with this alien parasite stuck onto my arm. It's not their problem; it's mine. I looked away from his gaze and continued, "A-Anyway… Is there anything wrong with any of your weapons? Or is there anything in general that I can help fix?"

"Hmm… I don't think there's any malfunctions with my weapons, but if you would like to check, you have my permission." He brought his arm up, giving it a second inspection from top to bottom. I looked at the arm closest to me, and I noticed something was loose. I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but I know a loose screw when I see one.

"May I take a look at this arm?" I asked as I pointed at his right arm.

"Of course."

Without any other comments, he reached out his right arm and laid it on the rail. I walked closer and started to examine it. I confidently nodded to myself. I grabbed the hair tie from my wrist, and tied my hair up into a messy bun. I quickly rolled up my sleeves and grabbed the gloves on top of one of the tool boxes. After I put the gloves on, I held onto Optimus' arm.

"… Could you move your arm to the side, please?" I asked, looking up at him with a small smile. Optimus didn't respond- he was just staring at the floor. He looked like he was in a deep thought. I didn't want to disturb him, but I had no other choice.

"Um… Optimus?" I asked a little louder. He snapped out of his thoughts and glared down at me.

"Oh, sorry… What were you saying?"

"Could you move your arm to the side, please? I need to check in between the gaps where the wires are… and such…" I repeated, giving a slanted smile.

"Oh, yes…" He moved his arm, and I tip-toed myself to take a better look at the inside of his arm. On the inside, there was some kind of dagger. There, I saw the loose screw connected it.

"Could you enable your dagger on this arm? Or… whatever that sword looking weapon is?" I looked back up at Optimus. He looked at me and just nodded. I noticed that he's rather quiet compared to the other Autobots. It was a bit awkward since I'm pretty quiet myself.

"I suggest you back up." He told me. I immediately took my hands off of his arm and stepped back. There, I watched the back of his hand slide out the dagger from within his arm. It was pretty cool. He had a trick underneath his sleeve- _literally._

"Whoa…" I muttered underneath my breath. Optimus laid his arm again on the rail, and I stepped closer to examine the dagger. Either side of the blade was bright orange, almost like it was on fire. The center of the blade was pure metal. Though, I've never seen this kind of metal before, so I assumed it came from his planet. Huh… his planet…

"… I, umm… never really asked any of the Autobots here yet, but what is your planet called?" I asked, running my hand halfway across this massive dagger to feel for any major cracks or dents.

"… Cybertron." He merely replied. I looked at him, and I saw that he was drifting off into his thoughts again. My eyes were glued to his expression. His expression was kind of… sad.

"…Are you okay?" My question seemed to have snapped him out of his thoughts once again. He looked down at me, and then quickly averted his gaze. I soon followed after him, and I began to search for the loose screw. "… I'm sorry. If you don't want to talk about Cybertron, then I completely understand—"

"No, no. It's okay. I was just thinking about some things." This particularly caught my attention.

"If you don't mind me asking, what were you thinking about?"

"…Megatron's return."

I momentarily stopped my search. That name, _Megatron_… It was that name that the voice had mentioned. It was that voice that told me that this 'parasite' on my arm is the power that will help Megatron '_rise up once again_'. I'm curious to know who this Megatron is, and to find out how this '_power_' I possess relates to him.

"Who is… Megatron? And what happened to him?" I asked hesitantly, casually continuing my search as I listened very carefully.

"He is the leader of the Decepticons. Not too long ago I had fought him to stop him and the Fallen. They were both trying to destroy your planet by harvesting your Sun's energy. I defeated the Fallen, however, Megatron just merely escaped from my grasp." Optimus paused. I could hear him clenching his fist on the rail. He must have been really upset about that, especially since the leader of an evil robot group is now on the loose.

"Has he returned yet?" I asked, and I found the source of the loose screw. There was more than one screw loose, actually, and all of them were in different sizes. I walked over to the toolboxes and tried to find the appropriate tools. At the same time, I was listening closely to Optmus' story.

"There have been no signs of him lately, but I have no doubt in my mind that he's planning something to harm your planet and its people." He shook his head in disappointment.

"…" I wasn't sure what to ask him next, and I needed to know more about Megatron. I would ask him the whole life story of how Megatron became evil and all, but that would take too long. There was only one thing in my mind that I could possibly ask him, but that would mean having to reveal my secret. I haven't told anyone about that _night_, at least not the real story. Optimus is the leader of the Autobots; he should know something about this thing on my arm. Then again, I could instantly lose his trust. Well, it's worth the risk.

"Optimus… I have a question…" I rummaged through the toolboxes, finding a few of the screwdrivers and wrenches I needed.

"What is it?"

"Before I ask you the question, I have to tell you a story…" I had found all the tools I needed, and proceeded to look back up at Optimus. He looked at me with a curious expression on his, and nodded.

"Go on…"

The nervousness was getting caught up in my throat, but I continued to walk towards Optimus' arm. I tightly held onto the tools as I made my way. I took in a deep breath, and let out a long sigh.

"Almost all my life I've lived in an orphanage. Y'know, where kids with no families or homes stay? One night, when I was 15, my friend and I wanted to watch the meteor shower near our area. We weren't allowed to watch it, so we weren't able to see it. Though, I heard something else fall from the sky, and it definitely wasn't a meteorite." I laid all the tools on a nearby cart, and I proceeded to tighten one of the screws with the wrench. "As curious as I was, I looked out the window. What I saw… was _not_ a meteorite. It was this kind of… teleportation pod."

"…Teleportation pod? You mean the ones that we, Autobots, use to land on Earth?" Optimus seemed to have raised a brow. I have his full attention now. I nodded slowly, trying to avoid eye contact.

"Yes. And… I was pretty stupid to do this, but I snuck out of the orphanage to check it out. When I went to the crash site, I saw the teleportation pod in pieces… and I saw the same alien species as you. He was already dead when I got there, though."

"Was he an Autobot, or a Decepticon?" Optimus leaned in a bit closer, but I still refused to look at him.

"…I wanted to check out what else was with him. I couldn't find anything important, really… Only this small stone I found in his hand."

"Could it be— Sophie, was he an Autobot or a Decepticon?" He leaned in closer, trying to look at me in the eyes. I still tried not to look at him.

"I heard voices in my head. I-It was probably your native language, I don't know. I didn't really understand what they were telling me, but I had a strong feeling that they wanted me to touch the stone. I- I know it was completely ignorant of me to do this, but… I did what they told me, and I touched the stone. I don't remember much after that, only a voice that told me, '_You are truthfully the most foolish human being. With your powers, Lord Megatron will rise up once again'_."

"You… encountered a Decepticon…?" He guessed it right. I could tell Optimus was looking at me with disbelief. I could feel the trust slowly slip away from the both of us. I tightly pressed my lips together and lowered my head.

I stopped tightening the screws, and dropped my hands to my sides. My eyes were still glued on his arm. I couldn't- I didn't have the guts to look at him straight in the eye.

"… At the time, I didn't know he was a Decepticon. I didn't even know WHAT that guy was. He was the first and only Decepticon I have ever encountered." I paused, and held onto my left arm for a bit. My hand travelled from my arm to the collar of my long sleeve. I pulled down my collar, exposing my bra strap and more importantly the metal band on my arm. I finally had the courage to look at Optimus, who was staring at me in return with his widened, glowing optics. Before anyone else could see, I pulled up my collar and continued to glare at Optimus.

"Ever since I touched that stone, this metal band has attached itself onto my arm. It's… still growing." I let out another long sigh. I averted my gaze elsewhere. This was getting really tough for me to say. "I'm just- I'm sorry. If you think that I betrayed you- or any of the Autobots. Please understand… I am NOT on the Decepticon's side. A-And if I am, I didn't ask to be. I just, I don't want to cause danger to you, or to anyone—"

"Sophie, it is alright." Optimus interrupted, making a motion with his other hand to calm me down. His tone softened and he continued, "If what you say is true, then I believe that you did not mean for this to happen. You just have to accept your accident as it is."

"B-But… If this metal band is a product of a Decepticon, doesn't that automatically make me be on their side?" I furrowed my brows in a saddened expression. Optimus just shook his head and leaned over to where his face was just a few feet from mine. I closed my eyes tightly, getting ready to embrace a lecture.

"Sophie, you are free to choose which side you want to support. You might have been touched with the Decepticon's power, but it's entirely up to you to choose what to do with it."

My eyes shot open, and I slowly began to turn my gaze towards Optimus. We were just staring at each other. It wasn't awkward at all. I was beginning to understand now. I've… never thought of it that way. I never thought that I had the freedom to choose sides. Maybe that's what made the Autobots respect Optimus so much. Maybe that's what makes Optimus a true leader.

"I… I see." I replied softly. I looked down momentarily, trying to collect my thoughts. "…Now my question is: if this metal band wraps around my arm completely, what do you think will happen to me?" I looked back at him, and he was already thinking of possible answers.

"You said you touched a stone. What did that stone look like?"

"It was pretty small. Probably the size of half my palm? I… I don't know. I think there was some small symbols on it. It could have been in your language."

"It _could_ be a piece of the Allspark, but that was destroyed after you found that stone."

"So you don't know what will happen to me…?"

"I can't say. I have to see the stone for myself. But if that stone gave you the metal band on your arm, there is no doubt that you possess its powers."

I bit my bottom lip and furrowed my brows slightly. I didn't like where this was going. Not only do I hold this 'mystical' stone's power, but I'm not even sure what kind of powers it has. I put the wrench down onto the cart and stared at my palm.

"You'd best ask Rachet about this." I blinked out of my thoughts, and I looked up at Optimus.

"B-But… What if he thinks I'm—"

"Sophie!" I heard Liza's voice call out to me again. I turned halfway, and I could hear her walking quickly up the stairs. She arrived at the top with a few huffs.

"W-What is it?" I cleared my throat, feigning a smile.

"Rachet is… asking for you." She pointed her thumb back towards Rachet's station.

"Speaking of which…" I mumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, nothing… Why is he asking for me?" I tilted my head a bit.

"I'm not sure, but he said he needed your assistance, and quick."

"Oh, well… tell him I'll be there in a few." I nodded, turning back as I put the tools and my glove onto the cart.

"Gotcha!" Liza quickly made her way back downstairs. After she left, I leaned in towards Optimus.

"Please don't tell anyone about this, especially Bumblebee. Please." I whispered, feeling the corner of my lips drag down to a slight frown. Optimus looked a bit disapproved at the idea, but he nonetheless nodded.

"If that is what you wish, I won't tell anyone. But, if you want that metal band to be checked, you will have to tell Rachet." He made sure I got the message by looking at me in the eye. I hesitated, but I completely understood what he told me and I nodded.

"I'll have someone take care of your arm for the meantime, but I'll check it later to see if all the screws are tight." I stepped back, and twirled myself around to run towards the stairs. I didn't mean to leave him like that, but I suppose if Rachet really wanted me to assist him in whatever it is he's doing, I will just have to go along and help him out. Though, I'm not completely sure if I should ask him about the band on my arm. It was risky enough to tell Optimus about it. I didn't want to be suddenly seen as the _traitor_.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: Sorry for the wait again! This is a long chapter, hurrhurr~ <strong>

**I sure hope this was an 'alright' read. LOL. I thought it was alright. It's gonna get better, don't worry. (I know, I keep saying that but it's true! It _will_ get better! :D)**

**Thanks for reading, though! Please stay tuned for the next chapter~! :3 **


	7. Program

I quickly made my way down the stairs and onto the floor. Luckily, there was someone who was working in Optimus' station who just came from their break. I tapped him on the shoulder and asked him if he could tighten all the screws on Optimus' weapon while I was gone. He hesitated for a moment, but he nodded in agreement. I nodded him "thanks" and started trotting to Rachet's station. When I got there, Rachet was occupied on one of the bigger computers on the top of the stand. These computers was, no kidding, HUGE. It was probably designed for the Autobots… I think. I was soon distracted by something moving in the corner of my eye. I looked up to see what it was, and it was Liza waving at me. I immediately made my way up the stairs and onto the top platform of the stand.

"Ah, here she is." Liza announced, turning her head back to Rachet.

"Y-Yeah… What do you need help with?" I asked, followed by a few pants from the run. Rachet lifted his metal fingers off of the computer and looked back at me. I could see his optics lit up a bit and he took a step towards me.

"Sophie, I see that you've had your sleep. That's good… Ah, do you remember that project I briefly told you about yesterday?" He asked.

"Uh, yeah…" I nodded, unsure of where this was going.

"Come here. I'll give you a preview of what it is." He motioned his hand towards him, and I resumed with a nod. I walked over towards him, and then towards the huge computers. I saw the screen, and all I can really indicate from it is the shape of a human body and some equations. Honestly, I wasn't a big fan of equations, at least not the medical ones. I raised a brow and tilted my head.

"This is a human body… what are you planning to do with _that_?" I asked, turning my head to Rachet. He just pointed at the computer screen.

"I'm working on making these things I call, _Holograms_."

"Holograms? You mean like… those transparent thingies that futuristic people use as a means of communication?" I motioned my hands in different directions. Rachet give me a cold stare, and I shrugged. I honestly had no idea where he was going with this.

"NO." He replied, sharp and cold. Oh, I'm SORRY. "These Holograms is something that I invented so that, we, Autobots, can blend in with the humans, and to go undercover to places where our alt. vehicle modes wouldn't normally take us."

"You mean, going in disguise as HUMANS?" I asked, my eyes widened and a smile slowly grew on my face. I was pretty surprised that Rachet could even do something like that. I mean, Autobots can transform into anything that's metal, but into flesh? Can they even do that? How does that work? Wow, I have so many questions to ask, but the words wouldn't come out normally.

"Precisely." He nodded, taking notice on my excitement. A slight smile appeared on his face as well. "Don't get too excited, now. I haven't tested this out yet."

"What? I thought you needed my help." I furrowed my brows a bit, as I was getting a bit disappointed.

"I do. This is where a volunteer comes in." He stepped aside, and surprisingly, Bee was standing there. How long was he there for? I felt my heart flutter again. I slouched over and faked a cough, trying pound my chest to stop my heart from beating any faster. I stood back up, and I saw Bee staring at me again. He waved happily, and I just merely raised my hand with a small smile. Geez, this guy catches me by utter surprise.

"Wh-What are you gonna do with Bumblebee?" I asked, timidly avoiding eye contact with Bee.

"_He_ volunteered to do try out the Hologram." Rachet patted Bee's shoulder, making the sound of clanking metal against metal.

"What does that have to do with me…?" I raised a brow again as I pointed to myself. I heard Rachet give out a long, but annoyed sigh. I can tell he wasn't patient with my questions. For some reason, I was somewhat amused by that.

"I need you to see if Bumblebee's Hologram form is as close to a human as he can get." He replied, gesturing his hand towards Bee. I know he was trying to sound calm. I can tell he was beginning to stress out. HA.

"Oh, well… why didn't you just say so?" I shrugged. I saw him smack his forehead with his hand, making an echoed sound of clanking metal again. I bit my bottom lip and restrained myself from laughing. Rachet ignored my question and walked around Bee. He gently pushed Bee forward towards the computer.

"If you would please, Bumblebee… I need you to stand here." Bee replied with a nod and a hum that sounded like "okay". I looked over to the computer again and there, I saw this cord sticking onto the side of the hard-drive. I raised a brow, and my eyes followed the other end of the cord. Rachet held the other end of the cord, which had a USB plug at the tip of it. He then had Bee turn in front of him.

"Where are you gonna put that?" I asked, leaning against the rails.

"I'm going to put this near Bumblebee's Spark."

Bee's optics widened, and he looked immediately at Rachet. He made a long whir that sounded like "what?".

"Don't worry, it's not going to hurt you." Rachet reassured as he nodded.

"What is this 'Spark' you're talking about? Is it like… the Autobots' heart or something?" I asked again, just before Rachet was about to plug in the cord.

"You can say that. It's our life source, besides Energon of course. Without it, we would just be scraps of metal." Rachet shrugged and raised a brow. "Anymore questions?"

I shook my head and gave a quick smirk. "Nope! Continue on."

I observed closely as Bee opened his chest cavity with his own hands. He looked pretty hesitant, but he did it anyway. Then, I saw it. I saw Bee's so called 'Spark'. It was this bright, glowing blue light that shone behind a few layers of metal. My eyes widened and leaned in. I almost lost my balance while leaning in closer onto a rail, but I managed to catch myself and continued to watch. Like as Rachet had mentioned, there was a slot next to Bee's Spark. Rachet, ever so carefully, plugged the cord into the slot. I saw Bee's optics contract immediately and he stood absolutely still. For a second I thought he was dead or something, but I took a glance at the computer screen. I saw his vitals, and he was definitely still alive. I let out a sigh of relief.

"Now, it's time to download the Hologram…" Rachet reached over for the keyboard and pressed a button.

"A-Ah…" I watched the computer screen start to show the installments that was going into Bee. And by installments, I mean what he would physically look like as a human. Though, the images were going through the screen so fast, I wasn't able to get a grasp of what he would look like.

"Dammit." I cursed to myself, pouting my lips slightly. I was super eager to know what he would like as a human. I looked over to Bee, who looked like he was having a seizure or something. Don't worry, he wasn't. At least… I don't think he was.

"And… done." Rachet announced, looking at the computer screen. I looked at the screen as well, and the download was complete. Looking back, I saw Rachet carefully taking out the cord out of Bee. In an instant, Bee started to transform into his alt. form. That concerned me a bit. Did something go wrong? Why wasn't Rachet saying anything?

"Bee!" I yelled, pushing myself off against the rails and started to run down the stairs. I jumped down a few steps of the stairs and landed on the ground floor. As I made a turn, I nearly slipped and almost fell, but I caught my balance again. I ran as fast as I could to Bee.

"Calm down, Sophie. Bumblebee is alright." Rachet finally told me. I stopped, trying to catch my breath. Then I looked up at him.

"Just watch." He pointed his finger at Bee. I looked back at Bee's alt. form, but nothing happened.

Then, I saw the door open. The first thing I saw was this yellow sneaker step out onto the floor behind the door. Following after that was the other sneaker, as well as the black skinny jeans that covered the ankles. I took a step closer, squinting my eyes a bit to get a better look. Through the clear glass window, I could barely see what seemed like a yellow v-neck, long sleeve shirt. The figure finally stood up, and I saw locks of shiny, blonde hair with two streaks of black on the front of his fringe. Then… I saw his face. Let me just say, this guy was absolutely _gorgeous_. He had a symmetrical, oval face with a hint of some playful adolescence. The most beautiful feature of his face was his eyes. Even from this distance, I can see his brilliantly bright, blue eyes looking directly at mine. Then, I realized something- this was _Bee_. My eyes widened and my heart began to race again. I frantically looked side to side, and then finally looked down. I could feel my cheeks burning again. Gah, talk about embarrassing. I took a small peek back at him, and a huge smile grew on his face. Goddammit, why is Bee's human form even _more_ adorable?

"Sophie!" He yelled as he shut the door of his own alt. form, and then ran directly towards me. My eyelids fluttered, and I timidly look away again. He had only stopped just a few inches away from me, and my heartbeat got faster. He stood probably at 5'9", which was pretty tall compared to me being 5'4". I looked from side to side again, not sure of how to hide my flushing face. I felt like slapping myself for acting this ridiculous.

"Hm…? Are you okay?" Bee asked. I slowly lifted my head, and I saw him looking down at me with a raised brow and a tilted head. I flinched slightly, and I took a step back.

" I'm okay… S-Sorry…" I waved my hands from side to side vigorously as I looked away again.

"Why are you acting all… weird?" He asked, reaching his hand toward my shoulder. I moved back, and accidently caught his stare towards me. I couldn't escape his gaze now. Gosh, with this extremely fast heart rate and my weirdness, I thought I was about to die. Nonetheless, I didn't want to risk the awkward silence, so I cleared my throat and shrugged.

"H-Hey… You can talk normally now. I mean, not through the radio." I told him, averting my gaze once again and rubbed the back of my neck. He blinked a few times, and let his hand rest gently on his neck. In his human form, I just realized that there was a huge scar across his left neck. I wondered,

_What… exactly happened to him?_

"Y-You're right…" Bee told me, clearing his throat and hummed in a few notes. "Hey, Rachet! I can spea—" While he was yelling, he started to cough quite violently. I immediately turned my gaze back to him. He was leaning forward, trying to catch his breath. I worriedly stepped closer to him, gently placing my hand on his arm. I was expecting my hand to go through him, but surprisingly, it didn't. I could actually feel his body heat as well as his muscles.

"Bee, you alright?" I asked, and then immediately looked back at Rachet. He had his hand on his chin and observed Bee.

"It seems that he can speak normally in his Hologram form, but not when he projects his voice." He noted as he kneeled down and leaned in towards us. "I'll have to work on that, too."

"Is he going to be okay, though?" I asked quickly after his statement. From the corner of my eye, I saw Bee raising his hand and let out a few pants.

"I'm okay… don't worry. Damn… that surprised me." He reassured me, even though his voice was husky and shortened to a whisper.

"Do you need water… or something? Do Holograms even drink water?" I started to panic, turning my head from side to side, and looked around to find someone to give Bee some water. Bee looked at me, rather wearily, and smiled gently.

"I don't need water. I'm an Autobot, remember?" He whispered to me, a smirk slowly forming in the corner of his lips. I felt my cheeks burn even more as I continued staring back at him.

"He's right. The coughing and loss of his voice should be temporary, at least in this form." Rachet quickly added, and stood up.

"Oh… Okay…" I nodded, and quickly lowered my head.

"…Hmm, since we're not on any missions at the moment, why don't you take Bumblebee out to the city?" Rachet's question nearly made me choke on air. I coughed briefly, and looked up at him with widened eyes and a raised brow.

"What? You mean like in his Hologram form?" I blurted out in a rather rude tone. I didn't mean to, of course, but the thought of taking Bee to the city is like babysitting a child… except this is an Autobot! Especially being at a size that he's not familiar with, he probably doesn't know how to get around the place because he was so used to watching out for humans to not step on. I know it wouldn't probably be that bad, but what can I say? I worry and assume too much.

Rachet shot a brow back at me, and let out a snort. "Is that a problem?"

"I—N-No… No, sir." I lowered my head again and shrugged. I heard Bee chuckling beside me, and I looked back at him. I furrowed my brows, and glared at him. He noticed my glare and just smiled at me. I slowly let go the tension, and sighed. I managed to smile softly back at him. His simple actions frustrate me sometimes, but I suppose it could be a good thing. Maybe a lovely smile is something I need in a predicament like this.

"All I'm asking is for you to observe and take note his Hologram form while he's out there." Rachet sighed as he motioned his hand outside of the building.

"…Alright. I'll do it. But, is it alright if I leave? And, why don't you come along, too? You don't have to be in this… robot form." I scanned him from bottom to top. Only a slanted smile formed out of this suggestion.

"Prior to your arrival, I had asked Liza for her permission; she said it's alright as long as you get your work done for the day. And, I can't. I need to stay here and monitor Bumblebee's vitals and program functions here." He turned around to face the computer screen again, and with my furrowed brows returning to my forehead, I frustratingly pouted my lips.

I leaned a little to the side to where Bee was. I shifted my lips to the side of one of my cheeks, and whispered, "Gosh, this guy makes up so many excuses. Why can't he go to the outside world with us on a normal day and just relax? I can imagine him complaining all day in _his_ Hologram form…" With that comment stated, Bee started to burst out into laughter. Even though his voice was still a bit husky, he laughed hard enough to clear his throat a bit more. His contagious laughter soon caught up to me, and I eventually started to laugh along with him. Rachet suspiciously turned halfway around and glared at us.

"…What are you laughing at?" He asked, seeing his brows clearly furrowed.

"N-Nothing! Nothing!" I quickly yelled out, trying to hold in my laughter by gently biting my lower lip. Bee, on the other hand, kept laughing. Hysterically. I honestly didn't think my annoyed comment was all that funny, but his laugh was just so playful and (do I dare say it) cute, I couldn't help but to keep laughing along with him. I gave him a sharp stare and slapped his arm with the back of my hand.

"Oww! Geez, Sophie… for a human, you hit pretty hard…" Bee whispered to me as he rubbed his arm in pain.

"S-Sorry…" Now I'm the one who's starting to laugh hysterically. I couldn't even finish my apology. I guess Bee's Hologram isn't so bad after all.

"AHEM." Rachet's sharp tone startled me, and I jumped up a bit. I blinked quickly and looked up at him.

"O-Oh, I'm sorry." I bowed my head apologetically. "…D-Do you still want me to 'observe' Hologram Bee?" I lifted my head a little, peeking through my straight fringe to see Rachet's expression. He still didn't look too happy. A long sigh came out of him. He turned to the computer again, and he shooed us with his hand to the outside of the building.

"Just go before we're called again to another mission. Quickly, now."

I looked at Bee from the corner of my eye while he did the same.

"C'mon! Let's go before he starts lecturing us again…" Bee whispered to me, motioning his head towards his alt. form.

"I heard that, Bumblebee." Rachet sternly said without turning around. Bee balked and proceeded to quickly run into the vehicle. I just watched him ridiculously made his escape. I took a quick glance at Rachet before running to Bee's alt. form.

"Sorry again, Rachet! I'll give you the full details of Bee's Hologram state when we come back!" I know he couldn't see since his back was faced to me, but I gave him a gentle smile. Then, I remembered that I had to check back in with Optimus before leaving the headquarters. I trotted to Bee's alt. form and quickly patted the front of the hood.

"Hey, Bee. Just meet me outside, alright? I gotta check on Optimus for a bit." I looked at him through the front window, and he gave me his thumbs up. A big smile happened to make its entry to my face, and I ran back to Optimus station. I saw the guy, who I asked to help tighten the screws on Optimus' weapon, still working on Optimus. I had to lift my head back to almost a 90 degree angle to find Optimus' face. He looked down, and I waved with a small smile.

"I'm sorry, Optimus. I'd hate to leave you hanging, but I gotta do an 'errand' for Rachet. I'll check on your weapon once I come back. O-Or whenever I see you!" I began to twirl around with the tip of my toes, but I heard Optimus saying,

"Wait!"

I immediately stopped, and turned my upper torso half way around. I saw him kneel down and leaned in towards me. His optics were looking directly into my brown hues. My smile soon faded to a slight frown. I already knew what he was going to say.

"Did you ask Rachet yet?" He asked quietly.

"…Not yet." I moved my gaze slowly to the floor, and then to my sneakers. I tip-toed on one of my feet and moved it from side to side.

"Sophie, I am not telling you to get the band on your arm to be checked now. But, if you don't ask soon, then you may never know what it will do to you." He tried to look at me in the eyes again, but I refused to return my gaze.

"I know that. I'm just…" I turned my back on him, and lowered my head. "…I'm afraid to tell him. It was scary enough when I told you about it."

"There are things in life that you must tell others if you seek help, even if it may be a secret." I knew Optimus would say something like that. Hearing it directly from him, though, really did add some meaning to it.

"…What if he thinks I'm a traitor?" I asked, turning my head slightly to the side. I heard a sigh come from him as well as his metal joints moving.

"You will have to take risks, Sophie. But, I'm sure if you explain the story to Rachet, just as you told it to me, he would understand your situation." He paused. I began to part my lips as I was about to say something in reply. Though, he beat me to it when he continued, "I'm sure Bumblebee would understand, too."

I blinked and my eyes widened. I twirled myself around again to face Optimus.

"I noticed Bumblebee has been attached to you since you arrived, and I know for a fact that he wouldn't doubt you." Optimus briefly shook his head. "Although we do not know much about you yet, just know we can already see the goodness in you." For a second, I could have sworn I saw Optimus smile- just a tiny bit. Speechless, I wasn't sure what to say exactly. I was just relieved to know that I wasn't seen as the enemy by the leader of the Autobots. My lips quivered a bit as I tried to raise the corner of my lips to turn into a soft smile.

"Thank you… I-I'll… I'll make sure to ask Rachet when I come back." I bowed my head, and I finally had the guts look at him directly into his glowing optics.

"…Thanks for believing me."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: Whoohoo! Sophie is gonna go on a date with Bee (kinda)! :D <strong>

**Haha, well I apologize for the wait again (I keep saying that in each chapter, don't I? lol. Wow). **

**I'm sure you guys don't care, but for the past few days/weeks I've been preparing for my first year in college. Kinda exciting, kinda anxious. LOL. **

**Okay, enough about my life. Thanks for reading this story so far, you guys! Your reviews/alerts/favorites really mean a lot! :3 **

**There shall be more to come~ **


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